Time Warner Cable to pay $2.2M to overcharged New Yorkers

As part of a settlement with the New York Attorney General, Time Warner Cable has agreed to refund $2.2 million customers, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said Thursday.

Under the deal, Time Warner subscribers in upstate towns including Batavia, Geneva, Lima, Livonia and Waterloo are in line for refunds.

Refunds in the form of credits on cable will include interest. They are supposed to make up for amounts Time Warner charged that exceeded limits set under franchise agreements it inked with municipalities. The settlement follows a two-year investigation that began in Schenectady County.

The overcharges trace to franchise agreements Time Warner inherited in a 1995 takeover of Cablevision territories. Although it voluntarily halted overcharges and refunded $1.7 million to subscribers in eight towns in 2007 and 2010, Time Warner continued to overbill customers in 10 towns and villages including the five Rochester-area municipalities covered by the recent settlement. The overcharges date to 2007.

Time Warner customers should see credits averaging $119 within the next 90 days. Individual credits will vary according to the cost of packages subscribers were signed up for.